Bartoli’s Sudden Retirement Shocks Tennis World

Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli shocked the tennis world by announcing her retirement from the sport at the age of 28.

After a second round loss to Romanian Simona Halep at the Western and Southern Open, the Frenchwoman, ranked seventh in the world said: “I just really can’t do it anymore”.

Her surprise announcement comes just six weeks after she beat Germany’s Sabine Lisicki in the Wimbledon final to claim her one and only grand slam title.

“I’ve already been having a lot of injuries, at the beginning of the year I felt I really pushed my body through the limits to win this Wimbledon,” said Bartoli, wiping the tears from her eyes. “After the match I could barely walk my Achilles was hurting me so much, last week it was my abs and this week it was my lower back and my shoulder again and my Achilles. It’s really my whole body is too tired and stiff from all of this so I felt really deep inside me it’s time, it’s time now to do something else.”

Bartoli had given no hint that she was considering retirement and in fact seemed focused on preparing for the North American hard-court season and the upcoming U.S. Open.

She played last week in Toronto and was seeing her first action in Cincinnati having received a first round bye.

But a 3-6 6-4 6-1 loss to Halep looks to have been the last straw.

“I really pushed my body throughout the limits, really, to achieve my dream but now I just can’t do it anymore, I just can’t. Even if mentally I would like to my body just can’t follow and there is nothing I can do about it,” said Bartoli, an eight-time winner on the WTA tour.

“I really tried to keep playing but I just can’t anymore, as much as I love the game it’s just time for me now to give my body a rest, I’ve been using it for so long, for so many years that it’s time now.”